Internationalizing the science curriculum: Student and Staff perceptions Dr Graham Scott1 & Dr Marina Mozzon-Mcpherson2 1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Hull; 2 Department of Modern Languages, University of Hull Abstract In an attempt to understand desire for and barriers to the internationalization of university science curricula we present the initial findings of qualitative and quantitative explorations of the perceptions of both students and staff to the integration of modern languages and intercultural competence in biological science. Context The internationalization agenda is a priority for Higher Education1. iThere is a growing demand for graduates with the skills and confidence to operate in a global economy and across cultures. Internationalization is an integral part of the policy and strategic plan of the University of Hull and it is increasingly becoming part of the academic discourse. However, embedding internationalization policies into the academic practices of an institution requires a strategic, staged approach permeating academic and management processes and structures to impact upon the way in which the curriculum within a discipline is conceptualised, designed and delivered. We therefore take the view that internationalization is a pervasive process in which an understanding of cultural differences (Lambert, 1994; Lapointe 1994; Jones and Brown 2007) is central to the individual’s ability to maximise their potential at both the personal and professional level (Badley 2000). Some disciplines (business, law and languages for example) have obvious international relevance and curricula readily developed to incorporate an international perspective. In the sciences however it is often less obvious to students, and perhaps to their tutors, that they could potentially be preparing themselves for a career in a multinational company with interests in several countries. In some disciplines therefore, the internationalization of the curriculum may be more of a challenge. Recent figures provided by the CBI2 continue to indicate a reliance (75%) of UK trade upon exports to countries where English is 1 www.hm-treasury.gov.uk, Undergraduate Physics Enquiry, www.iop.org, Dearing Review, www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2006_0144, http://languages.nuffieldfoundation.org/filelibrary/pdf/languages_finalreport.pdf 2 http://www.cbi.org.uk/pdf/skills_report0408.pdf: CBI Report Taking Stock: CBI education and skills survey 2008 1 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 not the first language. Graduate proficiency in one or more additional languages and competence in inter-cultural skills is therefore high on the CBI agenda and key to the competitiveness of UK PLC. However, it has been noted that few universities have directly addressed the development of inter-culturally competent students as an anticipated outcome of internationalization (Caruana, 2004). Despite its significance in terms of graduate employability3 reviews (Caruana & Hanstock, 2003; Caruna 2003) reveal little empirical research addressing the embedding of international perspectives in teaching and learning. In relation to internationalization, the focus is often subject content rather than skills, attitudes and behaviours. Caruna (2003) reports a failing on the part of the literature to present a cross-discipline understanding of the key terms and concepts of an internationalized curriculum and thus there is currently no clear consensus on the meaning of the term internationalization in HE. Much of the work so far has concentrated on understanding and evaluating the support provided to international students studying in an English-speaking country (Bourn, et al 2006; Deardorff 2006); whilst internationalization for home students is often achieved by study abroad and exchange programmes, or by on-campus cultural events (Wächter 2003). The role of various stakeholders (professional bodies, employers) in driving and informing internationalized curriculum design is not often considered. Consequently, the most challenging aspect of internationalization seems to be in designing a curriculum that enables all students (home and overseas) to gain an awareness of the impact of globalisation and the confidence to operate in an international context, as well as gaining an appreciation of the importance of language and intercultural competence skills in a specific discipline context. This is the ultimate aim of our project; an aim that we hope to achieve by designing a curriculum which meets the needs of an international student body but addresses the skills of the ‘global graduate’4. Our starting point, and the aim of this paper, is the examination of discipline specific beliefs and the assumptions of students and their tutors in relation to both the global market and the skills required to function effectively in that market. We believe that this reflection is a crucial first step towards the internationalization of the curriculum and that only by exposing and confronting the ‘myths’ inherent within disciplines can we begin to explore the notion of an internationalized curriculum and how it might be effectively delivered by inter3 Issue 5 of the Academy Exchange magazine on Internationalization, Winter 2006 (PDF 2.1MB) http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/assets/York/documents/resources/publications/exchange/web0523_ exchange_issue_5.pdf 4 DfES, Putting the World into World-class Education, Prime Minister’s Initiative 2, April 2006, http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/internationalstrategy; http://www.hefce.ac.uk/finance/fundinghe/sdf/ 2 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 disciplinary teaching teams. Our project focus is on the ‘the home student’ and academics in four science disciplines (Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Sports Science), but in this paper we present a reflection upon the outcome of preliminary questionnaires completed by first year biological sciences undergraduates and the staff who teach them. Through this qualitative and quantitative information we hope to gain an insight into the previous experiences of students with respect to modern foreign languages, their attitudes towards internationalization and their aspirations in giving their study and work life after university an international context. We also examine some attitudes towards internationalization by the lecturers who teach these students. In the experience of one of the authors (GS) U.K. biology students are unwilling to take part in international exchanges (involvement in an exchange agreement with the University of Lille, France, during the 1990’s resulted in one or two students coming to the department from France annually, but only one student from the UK made the reciprocal exchange in 5 years). Paradoxically, however, biology students often express the desire to work abroad after graduation (see below). Survey of students Questionnaires were completed by 35 first year undergraduate students (18 male, 17 female, all UK nationals with English as their first language) of the Department of Biological Sciences, University of Hull. These students have all enrolled to complete BSc degrees in Biology, Marine and Freshwater Biology or Aquatic Zoology. In this paper we make no attempt to distinguish between students on the basis of gender, age or the nature of their educational experience prior to university. We note however that in spite of the growing popularity of pre-university gap years only three of these students reported work experience abroad; one had undertaken voluntary work in South Africa, another had worked in Mexico and the third had worked on a fish farm in Indonesia. Respondents did however express a positive attitude towards other nationalities with 94% of students agreeing that they would like to get to know people from different parts of the world. Previous modern language experience 31 of the respondents reported previous experience of one or more foreign languages (Table 1). (In addition one student reported Latin as a modern language). Four students had no previous foreign language experience. All 31 respondents had followed a language to GCSE level, but only three and four reported study to AS and A level respectively. 3 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 Language N. students French German Spanish Greek Dutch 23 14 7 1 1 Table 1. Languages previously studied by students, some students have studied two languages, usually French and German. When asked why they had not taken their foreign language study further, seven students responded that they found languages difficult and did not enjoy learning them. Two students said that they did not have the opportunity to follow a language at AS/A level in the school/college that they attended. Eight students stated that they had to make a choice between sciences and languages.. It was not always clear whether students gave up languages because of external constraint/advice or because they freely chose to. When asked to reflect upon their previous experience of language study by indicating the level to which they agreed/disagreed with statements exploring self-perceptions of enjoyment and ability as language students 50% indicated that they did not enjoy learning languages at school. In spite of this 66% of students claimed that they were good at languages at school; and 74% stated that they enjoy the opportunity to speak a language other than my own when on holiday. Importantly the students did on the whole recognise the myth that everyone speaks English (72% of respondents). Student attitudes to languages and internationalization. Through our questionnaire we have explored student attitudes to internationalization in the contexts of both their current studies and their career aspirations: Languages and current studies. 55% of the students questioned expressed the opinion that the teaching of science (biology in this context) at undergraduate level did not require an international dimension. Given that the academic structure of the University of Hull does permit science students to elect to take one language module (20 of 120 credits) in each year of study we asked students whether in their opinion languages as they are currently taught reflected their needs only 38% of them agreed that they did. When asked if their tutors encouraged the study of a language students expressed the strong opinion that they did not (90%). This is a cause for concern, but when asked the reciprocal question 90% of them also agreed that their tutor did not discourage the study of a language. It is possible that this reflects a weakness in our questionnaire, but in the current context we interpret it as meaning that it is possible that tutors are somewhat ambivalent to the study of languages (but see below). 4 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 Languages and future employment. 36% of students felt that an additional language was irrelevant to them because they intended to work in the UK or in an English speaking country, and only 39% of them thought that languages were likely to be important for their chosen career. However 88% of them acknowledged that speaking a foreign language would give them more flexibility in employment opportunities. 61% of respondents did not feel that a foreign language was a usual employment requirement in vacancy advertisements. At this stage in their studies a number of the students stated that they had “a clear career goal in mind”. Two intended to become biology teachers, five wanted to complete further biology degrees (taught masters programmes and/or research degrees) and seven aimed to work in a conservation related field. Seven of the students expressed a desire to work abroad, listing America, Australia, and the Mediterranean countries as their preferred destinations. Biology teaching staff and the internationalization of the curriculum. The department of Biological Sciences at the University of Hull has a strong international context. Of the 25 staff who contribute directly to first year biology teaching 16 are UK nationals and others are nationals of The Netherlands (2), Germany (5), Iran and Brazil. In addition students may interact with a multinational team of postgraduate demonstrators during laboratory practical classes. Five of the eight lecturers who completed our questionnaire stated that English was their first language and of these only one reported that they considered themselves competent in languages other than English (French and Swedish). The three respondents who declared that English was not their first language claimed competence in French (2), German (2), Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese (and of course all of them were also extremely proficient in English as an additional language). One of these colleagues also reported a basic competence in Dutch, Danish and Russian. Seven of these colleagues agreed that biology is an international subject and that biology at undergraduate level requires an international dimension. They also agreed that an awareness of the non-UK context of biology would advantage their students as undergraduates and postgraduates. All eight colleagues agreed that such an awareness would advantage the students in terms of their employment prospects. Similarly, seven of them agreed that the ability to confidently use an additional language would advantage students in relation to their employment prospects but they were less sure about the value of speaking an additional language as an advantage in postgraduate (5) or undergraduate studies (3). When asked if they encouraged their tutees to take a modern languages free elective module only one of them said that they did (interestingly a UK national with no additional language). Two of them had no opinion and the remainder (5) said that they did not. Two of these colleagues said that they would 5 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 encourage those students expressing an interest in languages in future. The languages considered by colleagues as most useful to our students are listed in Table 2. When asked if they would like to see language modules made available to students as part of their degree, 1 colleague responded positively, 1 expressed no opinion and the remainder said that they would not. Of these, 3 colleagues were concerned that this would squeeze of the biological content from a curriculum that they thought already lacked discipline specific knowledge; one of them thought that there was little point in doing this because biology as an international subject seems largely to be conducted in English. When suggesting languages that would be of most benefit to students (see Table 2) colleagues suggested that French, German and Spanish would enable students to widen their employment prospects in the EU and S America. There seemed to be a consensus that, as a result of the historical dominance of English as the language of science , students would benefit most from a general awareness of cultural distinctiveness and language for social/business use. Colleagues identified the facilitation of placements, exchanges and jointly offered degree programmes involving EU partner countries as the main areas for development in terms of internationalization of the biology curriculum. The opinions expressed by colleagues highlight the need to involve university staff, (as well as students), in the development of new knowledge, skills, attitudes and values. Staff development strategies are therefore an important and integral part of the process of internationalizing the curriculum. This is certainly an important consideration if we are to ensure that international perspectives permeate both the teaching methodology and content of academic disciplines, and the structure and organisation of programmes of study. From these initial responses it is apparent that the focus and preoccupation of staff is on the acquisition and transmission of knowledge of their own subject; it would be interesting to explore how they view such content in relation to global markets and to graduate employability and how they might see the internationalization of their curriculum as a positive enhancement rather than an impoverishment. In order to assist staff to understand how we might internationalize specific science curricula it might be necessary to challenge the way they think about teaching in general and teaching sciences in particular (Ramsden, 1992). Future prospects; barriers and possibilities Our students have a positive attitude towards speaking foreign languages when abroad on holiday and they would like to get to know people from other parts of the world. On the whole however, they are not particularly driven towards work outside of the U.K., and, generally those that do express an aspiration to work abroad seem to be erring towards English- speaking countries and/or familiar 6 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 Mediterranean holiday destinations. When we asked those students who would not currently be comfortable working abroad to provide a reason, anxieties about language use were the most common. Eight of 14 respondents cited lack of language, or sufficient language competence/confidence as the main barrier to their working abroad. Of the remainder, two did not provide a reason two cited cultural/political issues and one would not feel comfortable working abroad because English people are not popular. It seems clear that one of the key barriers that an internationalized science curriculum must overcome is the missmatch in the views of tutors who are keen to promote mobility and students who may be reluctant to be mobile within a programme. Nevertheless, when asked questions about the kind of language tuition that they might like to see as a part of their undergraduate studies, and then asked about the possibility of placements/work abroad, their attitudes shift slightly (perhaps as a result of their reflection during the completion of the questionnaire?). When questioned about adding to their programme a language module for scientists , 84% of the students who responded to the question said yes. Furthermore, 85% of them stated that they would be prepared to undertake work experience overseas (26% of them would restrict themselves to English speaking countries). The languages that the students said they would like to study, together with some indications of their reasons for this selection are given in Table 2 alongside the languages that their tutors suggested would be most useful to them. Language French German Spanish Students 6 5 14 Italian Greek Dutch 1 1 1 Reasons given by students Build on previous study, widely used Build on previous experience Widely used, particularly in S. America, build on prior study Staff 3 2 4 Build on previous experience, the Dutch carry out lots of scientific research Interest Significant future competitor Interest To understand scientific terms Russian 1 1 Chinese/Mandarin 4 4 Japanese 1 1 Latin/Classical Greek 3 American (scientific 1 terminology) Sign Language 1 Widely used globally Table 2. Languages that students would like to study and the reasons that they would like to study them. The column headed “Staff” indicates those languages that colleagues thought would be of most benefit to students. Table 3 provides an insight to the topics that students would not and would like to see in a language module designed as part of their biology curriculum. Preferences appear to be for conversational rather than written learning and for a focus on scientifically relevant topics rather than general language to support life 7 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 overseas. This does suggest a certain naivety on the part of at least some students who perhaps have not realized that there would be more to working abroad than work! The social/lifestyle aspects of working abroad rather than the ability to ‘talk science’ were highlighted as being important by tutors. Would not like to see in a module Would like to see in a module “rubbish phrases like how much is that bagel?” and phrases for ordering food and drink Inappropriate words Biological/scientific language/words More interaction with speakers of the language and more conversation experience Topics unrelated to science Vocabulary and grammar A focus on grammar Basic language based on speaking and listening not writing Learning random vocabulary irrelevant Scientific report writing in another to the study of science language Numbers Blackboard (VLE) slides/pages in other languages Table 3. Student preferences for content areas in a language module specifically designed as part of a biology curriculum. Concluding remarks This preliminary analysis of our data has identified some interesting challenges for us to address in the second phase of our project; through the development of an interdisciplinary (linguists and scientists) and cross-sector team (academics, employers and students) group brought together to develop an internationalized curriculum. Specifically, the internationalization of the science curriculum will require staff to focus on teaching and learning processes as well as content (Alderson 1996). It will need to be simultaneously more reflective and practice-based when it addresses and assesses inter-cultural competence as a graduate skill if we are to develop international perspectives in our science students. It will need to take into account the bigger picture as well as the details of the subject. Acknowledgements – We would like to thank the Innovations Funding Scheme which allowed us to carry out this preliminary sudy, Professor Tina Overton (Chemistry), Ms Angela Clough (Sports Science), Dr David Sands (Physics) for contributing to this research investigation, Dr Claudia Capancioni, the research assistant who helped us with the data analysis, the students and staff who completed the questionnaire and Dr Raymond Goulder who suggested useful; revisions of the manuscript. 8 Scott & Mozzon-McPherson, Internationalizing the science curriculum, Wednesday 02 July 2008 i www.hm-treasury.gov.uk, Undergraduate Physics Enquiry, www.iop.org, Dearing Review, www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2006_0144, http://languages.nuffieldfoundation.org/filelibrary/pdf/languages_finalreport.pdf References www.hm-treasury.gov.uk, Undergraduate Physics Enquiry, www.iop.org, Dearing Review, www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2006_0144, http://languages.nuffieldfoundation.org/filelibrary/pdf/languages_finalreport.pdf Issue 5 of the Academy Exchange magazine on Internationalization, Winter 2006 (PDF 2.1MB) http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/assets/York/documents/resources/publications/exchange/web0523_ exchange_issue_5.pdf Caruana, V. 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